Depth Study 3 - Agrarian discontent: Kett’s Rebellion, 1549 (E VI)

Timeline:

1547 - Edward Seymour becomes Lord Protector

1548 - Failure of John Hales’ anti-enclosure bills

Enclosure commissions set by Somerset

1549 - May-June: Enclosure riots in the Midlands and the South-East

1549 - June: Outbreak of the Western Rising

1549 - 6-8 July: Kett’s Rebellion breaks out

1549: 31 July: Kett’s rebels defeat the Marquess of Northampton’s Army

1549: 16 August: Western Rising put down by government forces

1549: 27 August: Kett’s rebels defeated at Dussindale

Overview:

Led by Robert Kett, the rebellion in East Anglia was different to those seen under Henry VII & VIII, as it was against the power and influence of the landed elites. Particularly, the actions of the Protector of England, the Duke of Somerset Edward Seymour and his push for enclosure, which was to the detriment of tenants who were using lands for farming.